Imam Shamil

Imam Shamil (26 June 1797-4 February 1871) was Imam of the Caucasian Imamate from 1834 to 1859, succeeding Gamzat-bek. He was the political, military, and spiritual leader of North Caucasian resistance to Russia in the 1800s, and Russia ultimately suppressed his uprising in 1859.

Biography
Ali was born in Gimry, Dagestan, Avar Khanate in 1797, and, as per local tradition, his name was changed after he fell ill, being renamed "Shamil". He became a counselor to North Caucasian resistance leader Ghazi Muhammad, who was killed by the Imperial Russian Army at Gimry in 1832; in 1834, he took his place as the leader of the Caucasian resistance and as the third imam of the Caucasian Imamate. His forces waged a successful guerrilla war against the Russians for almost three decades, but Britain, France, and the Ottoman Empire refused to assist him as he had hoped, and he was forced to surrender in September 1859. He met Czar Alexander II of Russia in Saint Petersburg, and he was exiled to Kaluga, a small town near Moscow. In 1868, he was given a mansion in Kiev, and he was given permission to go on the hajj to Mecca in 1869. He died in Medina in 1871 while returning from his pilgrimage.